OAKLAND -- And then it was one.
The upstart A’s moved a step closer to the American League playoffs Saturday night with their 3-2 walk-off, wild-pitch win over the Minnesota Twins. Paired with a Tampa Bay Rays loss, Oakland’s magic number is down to just a single game with seven games remaining in the season.
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Mike Fiers took the hill and gave skipper Bob Melvin another quality start. The 33-year-old veteran opened the first by striking out the side and finished the night yielding one earned run on four hits. Fiers struck out five in six innings of action.
Oakland’s bats were slow to start, but shortstop Marcus Semien blasted a two-run shot off starter Chase De Jong in the fifth inning for his 13th homer of the season. The shot gave Oakland a 2-1 lead, but the lead was short-lived.
Jeurys Familia came into the game for Fiers in the seventh and didn’t fare well. After getting the leadoff hitter to ground out to short, he allowed a double down the left-field line to Ehire Adrianza, and then gave up the tying run on a single to left by Willians Astudillo.
Ryan Buchter came in to get the final out of the seventh. He walked Jorge Polanco to lead off the eighth, but picked him off first for the first out and then retired Jake Cave on a lazy fly ball to left.
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With two outs in the eighth, Bob Melvin turned to Fernando Rodney. He walked his first batter, but got out of the inning unscathed.
Matt Chapman led off the eighth with a single through the left side of the infield. Jed Lowrie pounded a single up the middle to give the A’s runners at first and second with no outs.
Khris Davis missed a golden opportunity for Oakland, hitting into a 5-4-3 double-play. Chapman advanced to third on the play, but was left stranded when Matt Olson was robbed of a hit by shortstop Jorge Polanco.
In typical fashion, Blake Treinen cut through the Twins in the ninth, lowering his league-leading ERA to just 0.81.
Stephen Piscotty roped a double down the line to lead off the ninth. Ramón Laureano struck out for the first out of the inning, but Semien’s hot shot to short was bobbled, allowing Piscotty to advance.
After an intentional walk to Matt Joyce to load the bases, Mark Canha battled, but struck out in an 11-pitch at bat.
On the next pitch, Twins reliever Trevor Hildenberger skipped a ball to the plate against Chapman. It got past Astudillo, allowing Piscotty to come in for the winning run. It was the first time since April 26, 1997 that the A’s won on a wild pitch.
What’s Next
Trevor Cahill takes the bump for Oakland for a 1:05 p.m. start Sunday afternoon. Cahill hasn’t pitched since Sept. 9 due to a back strain. He is 5-0 with a 1.49 ERA in 10 starts at home this season. Kyle Gibson is scheduled to start the final game of the series for Minnesota. The righty is 8-13 on the season with a 3.78 ERA.